ISLAMABAD - Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) still wants the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) to engage in dialogue to resolve the issues, senior leaders said.
Senior PPP leaders said the PPP had not closed doors for talks with the PTI or any other party.
“Instead of coming up with protests on a daily basis, they (the PTI) should opt for talks. They should give and take. Confrontation is not an option,” said a key aide of PPP chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.
He told The Nation that the recent protests achieved nothing other than trouble for the general public and challenges for law and order.
“They (the PTI) should come for talks. We are open. This is the solution,” he added, quoting the top leadership.
Even before this week’s protest by the PTI, the PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), had extended an invitation to the PTI to abandon its strategy of street protests and engage in constructive political dialogue with the government.
Recently, Acting President Yousuf Raza Gilani and Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal underscored the government’s willingness to engage in talks, while emphasizing that the onus lies on the PTI to determine its preferred negotiating partner.
Gilani reaffirmed the government’s openness to dialogue but expressed concern over the PTI’s apparent focus on engaging with other entities.
“The PTI seems determined to forge its path through confrontations with the establishment and legal battles with the government,” he added.
Gilani reiterated that the government’s doors remain open for “meaningful negotiations” but stressed the urgency of national unity amid prevailing political instability.
He urged all political leaders to unite for the greater good of the country. Reflecting on past events, Gilani recalled that during their tenure as the opposition under the PTI-led government, the PPP and PML-N were open to dialogue despite PTI’s consistent unwillingness to reciprocate. The PTI should give up the confrontational path and join the mainstream politics. Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said the PTI should work as a political party rather than confronting with the government.
“We are open to the dialogue process. Those who have committed crimes must be punished,” he added.